“Because We Are,” a murder mystery set in Haiti, aims to demystify the complex and baffling story of survival in the troubled nation, Class of 2011 alumnus Ted Oswald said during a discussion and book-signing at the law school on Jan. 29.

The “brash and smart-mouthed” girl who serves as the novel’s protagonist was inspired by a child Oswald met while in Haiti in 2010, when he completed a co-op placement that enabled him to do human rights work.

The unfolding mystery challenges the “winner-take-all” values that the girl developed in Cite Soleil, a vast slum in Port-au-Prince, and opens her eyes to the ethic of ubuntu, “I am because we are; my well-being is tied up with the community’s well-being,” Oswald said.

Three years after the massive earthquake struck the struggling nation, 357,000 people are still living in tents, while just $215 million of $5.9 billion in international aid devoted to long-term housing has been disbursed, Oswald said.

All proceeds from the sale of the novel are going to charitable organizations that are doing good work in Haiti, Oswald said.